Interesting New Project

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1 In this edition: Challenges to Twinning Correspondence Easter Greetings from Cambodia Did You Know? Quarterly Statistics for Q1, 13 Issue 9, April 2013 Welcome to the first Overseas Newsletter for On behalf of the NODC, we hope that your Easter was full of joy and peace. The NODC is currently preparing for a busy weekend in May at the National Office in Canberra where we will be holding a State AAS Coordinators Workshop, along with an OPDC Chairperson s Meeting and our first Interesting New Project Blessed Alphonsa Youth Conference, in the town of Arumanai in the Kanniyakumari District in the State of Tamil Nadu, have recently sent, via their National Council, a Project Application for a Medical Camp. The main outcomes of the Medical Camp Project are to promote an awareness of AIDS to the 2000 Villagers that live there and to offer Eye Testing. The application is from a Twinned Conference, it is for the normal limit of $ and requested in the application are promotional materials, food for the camp staff, rental of machinery and 20 spectacles. The Blessed Alphonsa Youth Conference has seven very active Members, who visit the sick, the elderly and the poor. They direct troubled youth to Counselling and Career Guidance Centres and help poor patients get to Diagnostic Centres and Government Hospitals. NODC Meeting for the year. Points from all of these meetings will be featured in the next Issue of this Newsletter. Speaking of features, please continue sending in any OPDC items or articles for the Newsletter. If you have already sent something, but have not seen it featured yet, please contact Kim Watson at kimw@svdp.org.au just as soon as possible. National Council Office St Vincent de Paul Society Australia PO Box 243, Deakin West, ACT / 6 Ph: Fax:

2 Challenges to Twinning Correspondence We have discussed many times the fact that Twinning Correspondence can be one of our biggest challenges. The Twinning Partnership may often require a great deal of patience and understanding. Here is a recent from the National President of Bangladesh explaining some of the obstacles that one particular Twinned Conference faces in trying to get communication to their Australian Twin: From: Gabriel Mondal Sent: Friday, 29 March :53 AM To: Kim Watson Subject: Re: Status Check: SRN Bangladesh. Dear Sr. Kim, Greetings from Bangladesh! Thank you very much for your . We know that communication is very essential between twinned conferences but the problem is the conference St Anthony Conference SRN: is situated in a remote area with very poor communication system. Internet or computer technology is unavailable in that area. I would like to mention that it is a hilly, indigenous tribal area. The only mode of communication there is face to face communication. Only through the Catholic Church we communicate with the people. Very recently, on 15th March, we went to that conference to distribute blankets from CGI. We had a good meeting with the conference. I will communicate with the regional council president, also the conference president as soon as possible to get in touch with you. Moreover, the people of that conference speak in a tribal language. They are not very fluent in Bengali, hence it is very difficult for them to speak, read or understand English. Also I will communicate with the Parish Priest to translate this letter to them. Best Regards, Gabriel Mondal National President 2 / 6

3 State OPDC Administrators and Twinning Coordinators do a great job forwarding Twinned Conference contact changes to the National Council Office for updating the National database. In the National Overseas Development Council Policies and Procedures Manual, Pg 13, Twinning Communication, a few extra steps are identified to help in getting communication flowing well between Australian and Overseas Twinned Conferences: Upon notification of new twinning partnership, Australian Conference communicates with the overseas twin immediately. All forms of communication are encouraged i.e. letters, card, , fax, text. Reasonable twinning communication should be established within six months and should occur at least twice a year. Australian Conferences must write to their twins when there is any change of contact details and also notify the State Twinning Co-ordinator who will then notify the National Overseas Development Administrator. A six monthly report will be requested from the State Twinning Co-ordinators checking the status of communication with all overseas twins. In the case of an overseas twin not corresponding with their Australian twin after a Status Check has been sent, the National Overseas Development Council will send a letter to the National Council overseas asking for a report on that twin s status. Often we think that we are the ones who have the wrong addresses for our Overseas Twins, however, as this from the Twinning Coordinator in Thailand shows, sometimes our Twin has the wrong Australian address information. They do keep their sense of humour about it, though: Dear Sr. Kimberly Watson, We hope you don t treat this message we have given you as an April fool s message. The enclosed was a 2013 returned Easter Card for which they would like to send to their twinned friends in Australia but unfortunately the card was returned back to Thailand claiming that the postmen can not deliver the envelope saying that the addressee was no more in that premise. Could you please give us the new address so that their usual correspondences between these two partners can be get through again in future. Please help us. They really like to correspond to their twinned friends in Australia. Warmest regards, Br. Joseph Charoon Your twinned friend in Thailand 3 / 6

4 Easter Greetings from Cambodia 4 / 6

5 Did You Know? In Cambodia As at the 2012 Cambodian Annual Report, Cambodia has 23 Conferences in three Diocese and 405 Members. The cultures in their Conferences are Cambodian, Vietnamese and tribal. Most of their Members are students. In the Philippines SVDP Philippines was able to send immediate relief assistance to calamity stricken areas affected by an earthquake last February 2012 and typhoons in August and December In April 2012 SVDP Philippines launched the Bicentennial Celebrations for Blessed Frederic Ozanam by holding a week long exhibition on the significant events of his life, along with a Thanksgiving Mass and a Wreath Laying Ceremony. In Indonesia As at the 2012 Indonesian Annual Report, Indonesia has 342 active and Aggregated Conferences of which 38 are Youth Conferences. On 30 September 2012 SVDP Indonesia began celebrating their 50 Years Golden Jubilee in Kediri, East Java. The highlight of the Celebrations will be held 5-7 July 2013 in East Java and will coincide with the election of the new SVDP Indonesia National President. Indonesia have created a new website: 5/6

6 Quarter 1, 2013 Figures Country Students Sponsored Twinning Transfer Grants Bangladesh - $4, $1, Projects Cambodia 134 $1, $1, $ India - $115, $52, $14, Indonesia - $26, $6, Kiribati - $ Myanmar - $5, $7, Pakistan - $ $ Philippines - $21, $10, PNG 9 $1, $1, $4, Fiji 103 $4, $1, Solomon Isl. - $ Sri Lanka - $ $ Thailand - $11, $9, Vanuatu 252 $ $ Jerusalem - $7, ECI - $ TOTAL 498 $202, $93, $19, State Students Sponsored Twinning Transfer Grants Projects Canberra Goulburn 30 $8, $ NT - $ $ NSW 292 $82, $20, Qld. - $32, $27, $4, SA 12 $11, $ Tas 9 $2, $ Vic 155 $45, $34, $14, WA - $9, $8, $ National Council - $9, TOTAL 498 $202, $93, $19, / 6